Place of Death

Creators

Contents

History

Origins

Sir Percy of Scandia was a member of the court of King Arthur in the 6th Century C.E. Sir Percy's father was an ally of King Arthur when Arthur was a youth.[2] Sir Percy's father eventually moved his wife and infant son away from Camelot to Scandia and, following the advice of Merlin, they schooled Sir Percy in combat and the knightly forms. When Sir Percy's parents died, Merlin summoned Sir Percy to Camelot, where Sir Percy, acting willingly as Merlin's agent, publicly played the fop. Privately, however, he used the identity of the Black Knight to defend the realm of King Arthur from any threats.[1]

Early Adventurers

When Sir Percy first began his ruse as a cowardly fop, he came to Camelot claiming that he was driven from his land of Scandia by the Baron of Emsore, and was granted "sanctuary" in King Arthur's castle due to his familial relation. The "cowardly" Sir Percy was instantly disliked by Arthur's ward Lady Rosamund whom he was smitten by, as well as the King's son Mordred and his aunt Morgan le Fay who were both plotting to usurp the kingdom. The pair attempted to eliminate King Arthur during a hunt, but thanks to Merlin, Sir Percy went into action as the Black Knight and prevented the hired assassins from killing King Arthur. The Black Knight was officially knighted by King Arthur, who promised never to ask of the Knight's true identity, much to the chagrin of Mordred.[3] After his first successful quest, the Black Knight was taken by Merlin to the Pool of Blood where Merlin had forged weapons out of an ebony Starstone meteor that came to Earth. Merlin presented him with weapons crafted from the Starstone: An ebony chalice, shield, staff, and sword. Merlin told the Black Knight of the foretold downfall of Camelot and that in choosing the right weapon the Black Knight could prevent the coming prophecy. The Black Knight chose the Ebony Blade as his weapon. Unable to determine if this was the right choice, Merlin destroyed the other weapons and they both departed, unaware that they were being watched by Mordred and Morgan le Fay, who managed to preserve the staff (later used to create the Ebony Dagger), a situation that would insure Camelot's downfall.[4] The Black Knight continued to to thwart Mordred and Morgan's attempts at the throne, and although successful, was never able to amass evidence that could implicate his foes in these attempts allowing them to continue their machinations for some time. Mordred made another attempt on the King not long after this, briefly usurping the throne when he had his men kidnap Arthur in the night and lock him in the dungeons beneath the castle. This was revealed to Sir Percy by Merlin who then gave him the Ebony Blade as a new weapon to use against his foes. The Black Knight then rescued King Arthur and Mordred was forced to surrender control of the throne.[3]

Not long after this a war party of Norsemen led by Leif the Lucky came to rape and pillage Camelot, kidnapping Lady Rosamund in the process. The Black Knight led King Arthur's knights into battle, rescuing Rosamund, who then became smitten by the mysterious Black Knight as much as she grew to despise his alter-ego Sir Percy. When Mordred attempted to poison King Arthur during a jousting competition, the Black Knight stepped in to challenge Mordred again and defeated him, however as usual Mordred managed to avoid having his schemes of regicide exposed. The Black Knight later uncovered an alliance between Mordred, Morgan le Fay, and the Norman warrior Sir Norman du Quincy to take over Camelot and rule it jointly. While the Black Knight and King Arthur's knights succeeded in staving off the invading Normans, the Black Knight still could not find evidence implicating Mordred and Morgan in the attack.[5]

The Black Knight later participated in a competition between various knights and was injured battling Sir Guy of Gascombe. Noticing these injuries, Mordred began investigating the citizens of Camelot to determine who shared the same injury as the Black Knight. Purposely bumping into Sir Percy, Mordred was shocked to find him injured and despite his disbelief decided to investigate further. However, Percy managed to maintain his secret when Merlin briefly posed as the Black Knight in order to protect his identity. Later on King Arthur's birthday, the Black Knight thwarted Mordred's attempt of slaying King Arthur on his annual lion hunt by unleashing a pack of lions on the King. Sortly thereafter the Black Knight once again came to the rescue of Lady Rosamund when she was kidnapped by Sir D'Arcy of France who sought to force Rosamund to be his bride.[6] The Black Knight later was briefly an outlaw of the kingdom of Camelot when Sir Guy Wandrell posed as the Knight in order to frame the hero. However the Black Knight cleared his name after he defeated his impostor. The Black Knight then assisted King Arthur and his knights in fighting off the Scottish outlaw Kevin MacCaul who attempted to reclaim his Black Castle after King Arthur exiled him years earlier. As Sir Percy, the Black Knight was kidnapped along with King Arthur and Lady Rosamund by French-Sicilian pirates under the employ of Mordred. Sir Percy managed to dive overboard and returned to Camelot for reinforcements but found that Mordred had taken control of the throne and sent the Knights of the Round Table on false leads to find the King. Disguised as the Black Knight, Sir Percy led the remaining knights to the island where Arthur and the others were being held prisoner and rescued them, once again forcing Mordred to relinquish the throne.[7] The Black Knight also defended Camelot from Sir Gilles who tried to invade the castle with an army hidden in a fake dragon. The Knight also came to the aid of one of King Arthur's baronies when it was being sucked dry of all its wealthy by the opulent sheriff Sir Joshua Constaine. Shortly thereafter he prevented Mohar Jinn the leader of the Tartars from taking over Camelot and enslaving King Arthur.[8]

Interactions with Time Travelers

Percival was once handed what appeared to be the sword Excalibur by King Arthur himself. He consulted the Lady of the Lake, hearing a cryptic riddle. Percival found himself in the body of Dane Whitman the Black Knight of the Modern Era and confronted by the superheroes known as Excalibur.[9]

Fall of Camelot and Death

Eventually, after Sir Percy had married Lady Rosamund and raised two children, the truth of Sir Lancelot's affair with Guinevere became known, and Camelot was wracked by civil war.[10] Sir Percy attempted to aid King Arthur against Mordred, but he was ambushed by the forces of Mordred before he could reach Arthur. During the battle Sir Percy was stabbed from behind by Mordred and died.[4]

Spirit

Following his death, the spirit of Percy has appeared before his descendants whenever a worthy successor for the mantle of the Black Knight was needed. His most frequent manifestations on the Earthly plain have occurred during the Modern Era when he rejected his descendant Nathan Garrett and later chose Dane Whitman to be his successor.[11]

Powers and Abilities

Powers

In life the Black Knight possessed no superhuman powers. The nature and extent of his supernatural powers as a spirit are unknown.

Abilities

The Black Knight was a master of swordsmanship, of horseback riding, and of all forms of combat known in Britain at the time of Camelot.

Strength level

The Black Knight possessed the normal human strength of a man of his age, height, and build who engaged in intensive regular exercise.

Paraphernalia

Equipment

The Black Knight traditionally wears a suit of black armor given to him by Merlin and a shield emblazoned with his yellow eagle. The Knight's armour was enchanted to be invulnerable to any weapon, except one made from the same metal as the Ebony Blade.

Transportation

Sir Percy frequently rode his steed, Thunder.

Weapons

The Black Knight wields the Ebony Blade, a legendary mystical blade crafted by Merlin, with several intriguing, unique properties.